256 MK. R. K. SYMONS 



together with the voiing one in the nest. I took up a 

 position at the foot ot the krantz, in full view of the 

 nest, and waited. It was some time before I could get 

 a favourable shot; eventually, however, one of the birds 

 sat on the edge of the nest, and at mv shot fell dead 

 into the nest alongside the young one. The mate of the 

 dead bird was seen in the vicinity of the nest on the 

 following day ; it then disappeared for some time, to re-* 

 turn in a day or two with a mate, and both birds 

 were seen at tlie nest, but whether the young one was 

 still alive I could not tell although the birds certainly 

 appared to be feeding it. 



On June 1st. 1912, I again visited this nest and found 

 that it contained two eggs, which could be very clearly 

 seen from the top^with field-glasses; they were white 

 covered with reddish brown blotches. One of the birds 

 was shot while sitting on the edge of the nest, this time 

 from the top, and it fell down to the bottom of the krantz, 

 where on the following day it was recovered. The re- 

 maining bird on missing its nmte went off in search of 

 another and a few days later two birds were seen at the 

 nest. In 1014 one of a pair of eagles was destroyed 

 at the Little Tugela and the remaining bird soon re- 

 turned with another mate; but a few days later, one of 

 these was killed, whether the old one or not I cannot 

 say, Avhen also the remaining bird did not take long to 

 find another mate. In fact, once a pair of Black Eagles 

 have chosen a nesting site, it seems as if nothing will 

 drive them away from the spot; as soon as one bird is 

 killed, another will be found to take its place. 



In Basutoland, tliese birds are quite common, and I 

 know of several i)airs breeding there, one in a krantz 

 opposite the Mkhotlong I'olice (\imp, not far from the 

 junction of the Mkhotlong river with the Orange. This 

 nest is not in sucli an inaccessil)le ki-antz as most of tlie 

 others I have seen, and Mr. Tetlierbiidge, of Polela, Xatal, 

 who succeeded in getting down to it witli the aid of a 



